y meet the dead coming up that
way, collapsed, muttering something about my pistol, for the fool
seemed to think I could shoot a spirit.

"If indeed I can do so," repeated Zikali in a careless fashion.
"That is to be proved, is it not? Perhaps, too, it may be better
for every one of you if I fail than if I succeed. Of one thing I
warn you, should the dead appear stir not, and above all touch
not, for he who does either of these things will, I think, never
live to look upon the sun again. But first let me try an easier
fashion."

Then once again he took up the skull that he said had been his
daughter's, and whispered to it, only to lay it down presently.

"It will not serve," he said with a sigh and shaking his locks.
"Noma tells me that she died a child, one who had no knowledge of
war or matters of policy, and that in all these things of the
world she still remains a child. She says that I must seek some
one who thought much of them; one, too who still lives in the
heart of a man who is present here, if that be possible, since
from such a heart alone can the strength be drawn to enable the
dead to appear and speak. Now let there be silence--Let there be
silence, and woe to him that breaks it."

Silence there was indeed, and in it Zikali crouched himself down
till his head almost rested on his knee, and seemed to go to
sleep. He awoke again and chanted for half a minute or so in
some language I could not understand. Then voices began to
answer him, as it seemed to me from all over the kloof, also from
the sky or rock above. Whether the effect was produced by
ventriloquism or whether he had confederates posted at various
points, I do not know.

At any rate this lord of "multitudes of spirits" seemed to be
engaged in conversation with some of them. What is more, the
thing was extremely well done, since each voice differed from the
other; also I seemed to recognize some of them, Dingaan's for
instance, and Panda's, yes, and that of Umbelazi the Handsome,
the brother of the king whose death I witnessed down by the
Tugela.

You will ask me what they said. I do not know. Either the words
were confused or the events that followed have blotted them from
my brain. All I remember is that each of them seemed to be
speaking of the Zulus and their fate and to be very anxious to
refer further discussion of the matter to some one else. In
short they seemed to talk under protest, or that was my
impression, altho